The present invention is directed to a tool that enables all lug nuts holding a wheel to an axle to be simultaneously removed.
In stock car racing, the automobile may not be significantly modified from the "off the floor" condition which is sold in show rooms. So unlike the Indy car where a single nut can be used for attachment, the wheels must be attached with all lug nuts (sometimes 4 or more typically, 5). Accordingly, in racing stock cars, the removal and replacement of the wheels become a key rate-determinative factor in completion of a pit stop. One way pit crews attempt to reduce the turn around time is to cement the lug nuts to the replacement wheel to eliminate handling the lug nuts during replacement. In addition, 1/4" to 1/2" of the threads are ground off the lead end of the studs so that the cemented lugs can seat on the stud and not simply be knocked loose as the replacement wheel is mounted.
Still, in an industry where winning and losing can be determined by tenths of a second spent in the pit, it would be of significant benefit to be able to remove multiple lug nuts, preferably, all five, at the same time. A racing team which had such a tool might save 2-4 seconds each pit stop, a tremendous advantage in an arena where races are frequently decided by tenths of a second.
The present invention provides such a removal tool enabling all five lug nuts to be simultaneously removed. The tools comprises multiple individual socket assemblies for simultaneously engaging each lug nut that attaches a wheel to a vehicle, each socket including a nut-engaging socket and a satellite gear attached to each of said individual nut-engaging sockets for rotationally driving said individual nut-engaging socket in both rotational directions; a universal drive gear engaging each of said satellite gears for simultaneously rotating all of said individual socket assemblies in either of said rotational directions; a housing including an inner plate, an outer plate and a peripheral wall extending between said inner plate and said outer plate, said housing encasing said satellite gears and said universal gear; a drive surface attached to said universal drive gear; whereby a pneumatic wrench may engage said drive surface and simultaneously remove and replace all lug nuts securing the wheel.
Each socket includes a locator pin that is received in an aperture in the outer plate. The housing is generally pentagonal to accommodate the five lug nuts, providing adequate structure to support the five sockets without adding excessive additional weight. The sockets preferably are 12 or 24 point in order to facilitate positioning on the lug nuts. The drive surface may be either a recess or an integral shaft which can be engaged by a pneumatic wrench. The wrench will be operated in the reverse direction from normal since the universal gear will rotate the satellite gears in the opposite rotational direction from the direction the wrench operates.
Various other features, advantages and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art after a reading of the following specification.